In 2009, President Barack Obama named Durkan to be U.S. Attorney for Western Washington. As U.S. Attorney, she crafted the consent decree that led to reform in the Seattle Police Department.

Endorsements

The Seattle Times

Mayor Ed Murray

SEIU 775

Funds Raised

$352,721

Net Worth*

$5.75 million

On the Issues

Affordable Housing

"The original [Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda] recommendation would have changed the zoning in single family zones. The question is was it right to withdraw that? I think it was for very pragmatic political reasons."

Homelessness

"We must provide more emergency shelter immediately. We should have an immediate goal of 50 to 100 additional beds in each City Council district."

Police Reform

"We know that community trust can be earned or lost with every officer interaction. We must keep pushing and evaluating if policies, training and oversight are working in practice and to make sure the community has a voice in that process."

Former Executive Director of Transportation Choices Coalition. Worked at Pierce Transit at the executive level. Served as three-term State Representative from the 46th Legislative District.

Endorsements

National Women’s Political Caucus of Washington

UFCW Local 21

Other transit groups and unions

Funds Raised

$93,999

Net Worth*

$2.8 million

On the Issues

Affordable Housing

"By setting a target of $1 billion in affordable housing and allocating affordability targets across the entire city, we can then use that in flexible ways, like creating neighborhood-based plans."

Homelessness

“[We must] inventory the shelter space that the city can access. There are other buildings that King County has, that Seattle has, that other entities have, that even the private sector has, that could serve as shelters.”

Police Reform

“Expand and support crisis teams that integrate mental health professionals and social workers with specially trained officers.”

First ever Asian-American Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 174, the largest trucking industry workers’ union in the Northwest. Leader in the national Teamsters pro-union democracy reform movement, TDU. Served as a five-term State Representative from the 11th Legislative District. Served as a two-term State Senator from the 11th Legislative District.

Endorsements

King County Democrats

Seattle Education Association

Several other unions

Funds Raised

$11,597

Net Worth*

$250,000

On the Issues

Affordable Housing

“Significantly increase public housing stock to eliminate the huge gap between supply and demand, which will stabilize housing cost inflation.”

Homelessness

“Immediate, low-barrier public housing; No more sweeps of the homeless encampments; Continue to pursue tiny housing villages.”

Police Reform

On balancing police reform with public safety: “This is a systemic issue and we need to provide people with the adequate resources they need to live a fulfilling life.”

Former lawyer and partner at Stokes Lawrence, before leaving to start Great City Inititative, a non-profit advocacy group. Seattle Mayor, 2009-2013.

Endorsements

Sierra Club

Funds Raised

$36,470

Net Worth*

$800,000

On the Issues

Affordable Housing

“I have my own opinions, but if you want to get something done in neighborhoods [like HALA] you can't announce a grand bargain to people when they weren't ever part of the discussion.”

Homelessness

“We need to systematically review existing spending on homelessness for effectiveness while simultaneously scaling our response to the growing magnitude of the problem.”

Police Reform

“I support the strongest possible community oversight…. Community oversight is so important - it can hold all of us to our ideals for a police force. One that is effective, free of bias and excessive use of force, and trusted by the community.”

Worked as an engineer in manufacturing companies and at the US Department of Labor. Co-Founder and Director of the People’s Waterfront Coalition, which led the advocacy effort for a tunnel-free waterfront.

Endorsements

The Stranger

The Urbanist

Funds Raised

$143,953

Net Worth*

$4.1 million

On the Issues

Affordable Housing

“The problem is when people see growth happening, outside forces come in and prey on that. We need to figure out what’s legal here, build political will and use that revenue we generate to plow back into affordable housing.”

Works for Creative justice, an arts-based alternative to incarceration. She is also an attorney, which she mainly practices pro bono.

Endorsements

Seattle Peoples Party

Seattle Weekly

Seattle City Councilmembers Kshama Sawant and Mike O’Brien

Funds Raised

$86,479

Net Worth*

$0

On the Issues

Affordable Housing

“In a lot of ways [density is done in] neighborhoods that do not have the same kind of leverage or power in the city as other neighborhoods. And so I think we need to start thinking more equitably about where density goes.”

Homelessness

“Responding to Seattle’s homelessness crisis requires an intersectional approach because there is no magic pill, no single solution.”

Police Reform

“Form a permanent and politically independent Community Policing Commission (CPC) and granting the CPC certain enumerated powers to drive reform rather than merely offering recommendations.”

The positions on issues are drawn from candidates’ emailed responses to us or their websites. Where we received no response or couldn’t find their positions on their sites, either no information is included or is drawn from a Seattle Weekly round-up of the longshot candidates.

"In a red-hot Seattle market, encouraging the creation of affordable housing is a challenge. Increasing supply is the only response via incentives to developers but with caution as we preserve the fabric of our existing neighborhoods."

Homelessness

"Seattle spent $50 million last year and conditions only got worse. First priority should be getting people into shelters and off the street and then rapid re-housing into subsidized rental homes to give them time to get their lives back on track. We must cut down the bureaucracy and find ways to make funds directly available for assistance with rent."

Police Reform

"The police department has made great strides in reform. This latest shooting cast a dark mood over the city. I believe we need to reallocate funds in the budget to help the police secure body cams and better equipment and we need to have more officers on the streets, particularly downtown focusing on the drug problems."

"'Affordable housing' is a lie; diffusing costs doesn’t make housing more affordable. The best way to make housing more affordable to is allow the market to build more housing."

Homelessness

"City Hall is aiding and abetting homelessness. City Hall will spend $60 million on homelessness this year, but that money won’t go to homeless people. It equates to more than $19,000 per homeless person, but that money only enriches the NGOs that thrive on homelessness."

Police Reform

"I want the police to focus only on theft and violence. If that was their mandate, their attrition rate would likely be lower, and I bet the public’s respect for police would improve. Only then will Seattle be safer. City Hall’s wasteful and harmful pursuit to please everyone only degrades public safety."

Tiniell Cato

Cato told Seattle Weekly, “As a grant writer, I have found that there is a clerical error in all the processes and procedures that have to do with the government. Local, state, district courts, laws, businesses, nonprofits, landowners documents, contracts, policies, procedures, and processes all have a clerical error that results in discrimination that violates human and civil rights and the equal-opportunity policy pertaining to jobs, employment, education, medical, housing, homelessness, loans, grants, policies, crime, policing — you know, all of those things.”

"We must incentivize building of high-density housing in the right areas, and do so in a manner that we get significant housing built quickly. Until we do, the market will never catch up to the problem and reduce the cost of living for all citizens."

Police Reform

"The criminally permissive environment created for us by recent mayoral policy (in which the police have been instructed NOT to enforce law), is the opposite of a city’s duty to its citizens. Laws exist for a reason, and the failure to enforce basic laws has consequences."

"Seattle should be a place where people can live, work and play. That means that people who work in Seattle must be able to live in Seattle. We have to work collectively, with developers as part of the conversation, to provide more affordable housing options in the City of Seattle."

Homelessness

"I will personally engage, listen and partner with local non-governmental organizations working on the front lines of this issue, our corporate citizens and law enforcement to work towards an effective, sustainable solution to the homeless epidemic in Seattle. I pledge to personally meet every week with our police officers, non-government organizations, advocates of all kinds working directly on the issue — and we won't confine it to a conference room."

Police Reform

"We have to acknowledge that we simply are not yet a post-racial society. Institutional racism exists. I support alternatives to incarceration. I support body cameras for all officers to increase trust, accountability and transparency of police interactions. We must also continue and enhance community oversight of policing."

Lewis A. Jones

In his Seattle Weekly interview, he said “Of particular concern to me is the common use of the cell phone, used up next to the head....We need also some stability in our social life that can hail back to the good old days. We had laws against adultery; I would make that illegal again. Currently we have a spread of HIV in our county alone that’s causing an increase of five percent per annum in HIV infection. Making adultery illegal would be important.” In the Voter's Pamphlet, he said he wants to “bring back the Good Old Days.”

Dave Kane

Dave Kane has no website and no Facebook page and did not respond to our emails requesting more information — or to the Weekly’s requests.

"Seattle will never be able to reduce housing costs by itself. We must form a regional plan with all the cities from Olympia to Everett. We need to bring in all of the mayors, ST3 developer, housing developers, large corporations and the citizens and develop a regional economic and housing plan."

Homelessness

"We need to use the evidence-based approach Boston, Houston and Salt Lake City use to dramatically drive down homelessness. They do this by collecting robust data on their homeless neighbors so they can understand what they need, measuring all of their strategies, and only investing in strategies and contractors proven to work. Most importantly, they developed a coordinated care system."

Police Reform

"All police officers must go through robust and constant mental health, de-escalation training, and emotional intelligence training. In addition, all officers should have body cameras and Tasers. There is also now a movement where police officers and mental health professionals team up and take mental health crisis calls. This program should be considered."

She told Seattle Weekly, “My party and my campaign oppose all forms of the meritocratic liberal hysteria, which, while it’s directed at Trump, actually attacks the working class. This includes liberal intolerance of discussion and debate, like we’re seeing at [the Evergreen State College], a focus on identity politics and political correctness to the exclusion of any political debate...We are going to need to build a movement capable of taking political power out of the hands of the capitalist class, and our party — the Socialist Workers Party — is at the core of that.”

"Seattle is a great place to live — if you can afford it. I want to make it affordable for everyone. We have become a big city quickly and because of this we need to have a big city solution. I am hoping to propose a possible rent regulation as well as a way for longtime Seattle homeowners to be able to afford to continue to live in our city."

Homelessness

"In working with the homeless every day, I see many facets to this issue. We have grouped substance abuse, criminals living on the street, and the mentally ill together under the category of "the homeless." Each group has its own challenges and deserves its own solutions."

Police Reform

"I want to build a strong partnership between the Seattle Police Department and our communities so both groups will feel safe and respected. I would like to provide two-way forums where communities can share their concerns and also learn about police work, talk to patrol officers and understand why the police do what they do."

Larry Oberto

He told Seattle Weekly, “Seattle makes excuses and tolerates things and then just blames it on a growing city. I see that as a cop-out. In racing, you have defined time periods, you have defined goals, so that you can compete over a given time so you can do the best you can with what you have. And by doing that and competing successfully, you feel good about what you do and you put yourself in a position to win. Seattle has not put itself in a position to win. It’s just driving around with a flat tire, thinking it’s going to go away.”

“I would begin by addressing wage disparity by investing in the work force and educating and training local workers in basic coding and other related skills to entry level tech positions. On development, if the city is to subsidize new housing or allow it by rezoning, it should be entirely affordable, not just a fraction of it.”

Homelessness

"Replace “The Jungle” encampments under I-5 with a sanctioned tent city and create a more organized and connected program for existing tent cities that includes supplementing tents with tiny houses, garbage and sanitation service and showering and kitchen facilities.”

Police Reform

“I would create a specialized unit focused on areas that often fall through the cracks. It would be funded by diverting budget resources from parking enforcement. These officers would act as neighborhood ambassadors, enforce new drug and alcohol regulations focused on rehabilitating, help direct civilians to shelters and soup kitchens, and enforce parking violations (but it will be low on their priority list)."

From his website: “I have been prosecuted 3 times and have many trespasses given to me by the Mayor Adolf Murray, Seattle City Council and the Executive of King County, Dow Constantine. Since 2008, along with StandUP-America, I have spoken publicly about the corruption of our government over 1200 times in Council Chambers. You can see me everyday in council chambers.”

"Increase and re-start a version of the previously implemented Employee Hourly Tax on the largest employers in Seattle. This yearly fee will tax employers with over 1,000 employees working in the Seattle City limits, a sliding scale of 1-3 percent of the salary based on income of the employee with the tax starting on employees making $82K, gradually increasing to 3 percent with no cap on the income. Exempt are schools, city employees, healthcare providers, Boeing and non-profit employers."

Homelessness

"Actively consult the homeless population and outreach workers and develop a new plan based heavily, upon their suggestions, comments and concerns. Also, implementing more NON-Seattle Police Department monitoring of sites, cleanups (not clean outs), and continue with outreach patrols with counselors and homeless outreach personnel to let homeless population know their options."

Police Reform

"It’s very important to take the oversight out of City Hall and SPD and allow it to be monitored by an independent body. Create a more compassionate and cooperative police department. He plans to personally attend briefings for the SPD."